Fort Worth Police Chief Eddie Garcia said officers were “wrong” in how they described the limits of lawful speech during a viral confrontation with Christian street preachers outside Trinity Pride Fest. He also said the department has begun First Amendment refresher training across its ranks.
Garcia addressed the June 27 encounter during an interview with WFAA on Monday. The Dallas Express first published video showing officers warning street preachers Richard Penkoski and David Grisham about potentially “offensive” speech. Police later cited Grisham for disorderly conduct related to noise after he used a bullhorn.
“The biggest issue that I have is just the conversations and the way that we were describing what is lawful, what is not lawful,” Garcia told WFAA…